So let it be in God’s own might
We gird us for the coming fight,
And, strong in him whose cause is ours,
In conflict with unholy powers,
We grasp the weapons he has given,
The light and truth and love of heaven.
~John Greenleaf Whittier (1807-1892)
Therefore, my beloved brothers, be steadfast, immovable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, knowing that in the Lord your labor is not in vain.
~1Corinthians 15:58
No power on earth or in hell can conquer the Spirit of God in a human spirit, it is an inner unconquerable-ness. If you have the whine in you, kick it out ruthlessly. It is a positive crime to be weak in God’s strength.
~Oswald Chambers (1874-1917)
Oh beloved, it is true. We can, sometimes, take an emotional cannon-blast to the teeth. Pain, in moments like these, is a miserable facsimile for the words that don’t even exist to describe some of the feelings. The details aren’t often relevant in our pain, for we usually just use the details to try and compensate with anger and blame of others.
Shots like these are more like the retched muzzle-loaded anti-personnel grapeshot used in the horrible battlefields of the civil war. Unarmored soldiers would simply be torn asunder when hit by what was, in effect, a gargantuan shotgun blast. It threatened to leave a gaping hole of emptiness in its target.
Wow, stuff like this hurts. It hurts in many directions and at many levels. And most of us have been right in this place. We ache profusely over the pain that has been inflicted upon us. And, hopefully much more deeply, we ache over the pain we have inflicted on others.
What do we do?
Stand.
Therefore take up the whole armor of God,
that you may be able to withstand in the evil day,
and having done all, to stand firm.
~ Ephesians 6:13
Stand how? i just got hit by an emotional express train. How can i stand up against that kind of pain.
You don’t.
Wait… i thought you just said to stand.
Clarification: Stand in Christ. He does not fail. Not ever.
Look, i get it. Our pain feels overwhelming sometimes. i have received blows that have almost knocked me off my feet. My head has been ringing under the helmet of His Salvation. The breastplate of His Righteousness has transmitted painful vibrations into the core of my being, and left me gasping and weeping for breath for a minute. And my hands have stung from the shock transmitted to them as i wielded His Spirit’s Word-sword to fight off the despair that wanted to plunge me into some darkness.
But His armor held.
It didn’t even dent. There isn’t even a shadow of change in its luster.
How can that be?
G_d is real. His armor is real. His power is real.
Bottom-line: If we try to do any of this true-believer stuff on our own. We are gonna get smacked down, torn up, and stuffed into a really bad place by really bad creatures.
Life in the land of victory is absolutely assured to be a place of overt assault by the evils of this earthly life and the evil one who is its prince. The only way we are going to stand is in the power of His might. The power budget required here is nearly infinite. There is absolutely no room for us to bring any of our silly little human weapons to this fight. Yeah, silly, like bringing an accordion on a bear hunt.
Finally, be strong in the Lord and in the strength of his might.
~ Ephesians 6:10
~ Ephesians 6:10
